AG: They are aiming to miss
A beginning cyclist often forgets that every driver on the road is trying to avoid running over pedestrians and bike riders. The vast majority of drivers are nice people who get in your way only when they try to help, and the vast majority of the people who want cyclists off the road want them off because they want to "protect" them. Yes, there are psychopaths out there -- with around two hundred million drivers in the same nation I'm in, some of them *have* to be psychopaths. But even people who hate bicycles and fantasize about seeing the blood of the riders splashed over the pavement are keenly aware that the driver who splashes the blood is going to have a lot of paperwork to fill out. The psychopath will settle for hoping someone else kills you. So everyone except the guy who probably wrapped himself around a tree ten miles back is trying to avoid killing you. MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM! Ride where you can be seen, signal your turns, follow the rules of the road, and generally be predictable and visible. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: They are aiming to miss
On Sat, 27 Dec 2014 23:03:03 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: A beginning cyclist often forgets that every driver on the road is trying to avoid running over pedestrians and bike riders. The vast majority of drivers are nice people who get in your way only when they try to help, and the vast majority of the people who want cyclists off the road want them off because they want to "protect" them. Yes, there are psychopaths out there -- with around two hundred million drivers in the same nation I'm in, some of them *have* to be psychopaths. But even people who hate bicycles and fantasize about seeing the blood of the riders splashed over the pavement are keenly aware that the driver who splashes the blood is going to have a lot of paperwork to fill out. The psychopath will settle for hoping someone else kills you. So everyone except the guy who probably wrapped himself around a tree ten miles back is trying to avoid killing you. MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM! Ride where you can be seen, signal your turns, follow the rules of the road, and generally be predictable and visible. Generally true, except for the invention of texting. Get a mirror and keep an eye out for the car drifting out of their lane behind you. |
AG: Pre-ride stretches
On Sun, 21 Dec 2014 15:05:05 +0000 (UTC), Andrew Chaplin
wrote: As someone who lives on the edge of the boreal forest, I find it does not matter where I start my warm-up, inside or out, but then I am not yet 60. I find it's less important to get my heart going while still in the house than it was when I was under sixty -- I no longer go out in that kind of weather! The problem was that if I go out into the cold sluggish, my feet will get cold before I've worked up a sweat, and when they are cold the body cuts the circulation to them and won't switch it back on until they are warm, and they won't get warm until the circulation is switched back on. More than once I've spent a good bit of time sitting in a print shop with my shoes off, waiting for my toes to turn pink. It was much nicer the time I took refuge at a lunch counter, and had a mug of cocoa while I was waiting. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: Pre-ride stretches
On Thu, 01 Jan 2015 00:01:54 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: On Sun, 21 Dec 2014 15:05:05 +0000 (UTC), Andrew Chaplin wrote: As someone who lives on the edge of the boreal forest, I find it does not matter where I start my warm-up, inside or out, but then I am not yet 60. I find it's less important to get my heart going while still in the house than it was when I was under sixty -- I no longer go out in that kind of weather! The problem was that if I go out into the cold sluggish, my feet will get cold before I've worked up a sweat, and when they are cold the body cuts the circulation to them and won't switch it back on until they are warm, and they won't get warm until the circulation is switched back on. More than once I've spent a good bit of time sitting in a print shop with my shoes off, waiting for my toes to turn pink. It was much nicer the time I took refuge at a lunch counter, and had a mug of cocoa while I was waiting. Your problem solved !( Ta-Ta) http://tinyurl.com/kcamsxa -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: Watch your ankles
When dressing for cold weather, pay particular attention to insulating your ankles. Ankles think that they are supposed to be cold, and will happily report "Everything down here is hunky dory, boss" while they are sending chilled blood to your beleaguered toes. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: Watch your ankles
On Sun, 04 Jan 2015 00:42:53 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: When dressing for cold weather, pay particular attention to insulating your ankles. Ankles think that they are supposed to be cold, and will happily report "Everything down here is hunky dory, boss" while they are sending chilled blood to your beleaguered toes. Or move to a tropical country and worry about becoming dehydrated :-) -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: Watch your ankles
Joy Beeson wrote in
: When dressing for cold weather, pay particular attention to insulating your ankles. Ankles think that they are supposed to be cold, and will happily report "Everything down here is hunky dory, boss" while they are sending chilled blood to your beleaguered toes. It is not a widespread problem other than for those with poor circulation. I rarely cycle at temperatures below 0 Fahreheit (-18C), but, when I have, I found that ski underwear and regular crew-height sweat socks were sufficient. Boot covers are a darn good idea, too (I should invest in some). I still haven't broken out the Lifa underwear, although I bet there will be one or two days in early April that I will need it. -- Andrew Chaplin SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO (If you're going to e-mail me, you'll have to get "yourfinger." out.) |
AG: Watch your ankles
On Sun, 04 Jan 2015 13:27:09 +0000, Phil W Lee
wrote: Joy Beeson considered Sun, 04 Jan 2015 00:42:53 -0400 the perfect time to write: When dressing for cold weather, pay particular attention to insulating your ankles. Ankles think that they are supposed to be cold, and will happily report "Everything down here is hunky dory, boss" while they are sending chilled blood to your beleaguered toes. All joints are areas worthy of additional care in insulation during cold weather, for the same reason that they are the positions it's most effective to place ice to reduce a fever, and their being the easiest places to check a person's pulse rate - the blood vessels have to run near to the surface to avoid being trapped in the joint. This is most significant in the extremities of hands and feet and the joints by which they are attached, with elbows and knees not all that far behind. And not everyone's circulatory system is the same (just ask any phlebotomist), so some are more susceptible to cold than others. Of course, the same difference allows some people to shed more heat during extreme exercise. All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. What I did was to buy Hotronic toe warmers, and haven't had a problem in the seven years that I've been using them. The first pair lasted six years and then one battery started going bad so I bought another pair last year and they would probably last another six years except I'm going to be moving to Florida soon so that won't be an issue anymore. I also have pougies for my hands, and those help, but sticking battery powered (11.1 v) motorcycle-style grip warmers into the pougies helps a lot. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
For your reference, records indicate that
dgk wrote: All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. No, you have to address the fundamental circulation issue. I, too, find it relatively easy (especially with modern clothing) to keep my core warm enough to get sweaty, but the circulation to my extremities is still cut off. The solution is to combat the vasoconstrictor effect directly. My method: alcohol. I’m a non-drinker in general, but I *will* drink when I go exercising in cold weather. Not enough to get drunk, of course, but enough to get my circulation into the “warm” phase. I *want* to lose extra heat at the extremities. It’s -7F (-22C) in Minneapolis right now (worse with wind chill), and I’m biking today. It’s not as fun as it is in warmer weather, but it was far more miserable before I realized how alcohol could improve things. -- "Also . . . I can kill you with my brain." River Tam, Trash, Firefly |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Mon, 5 Jan 2015 17:38:06 +0000 (UTC), Doc O'Leary
wrote: For your reference, records indicate that dgk wrote: All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. No, you have to address the fundamental circulation issue. I, too, find it relatively easy (especially with modern clothing) to keep my core warm enough to get sweaty, but the circulation to my extremities is still cut off. The solution is to combat the vasoconstrictor effect directly. My method: alcohol. Im a non-drinker in general, but I *will* drink when I go exercising in cold weather. Not enough to get drunk, of course, but enough to get my circulation into the warm phase. I *want* to lose extra heat at the extremities. Its -7F (-22C) in Minneapolis right now (worse with wind chill), and Im biking today. Its not as fun as it is in warmer weather, but it was far more miserable before I realized how alcohol could improve things. Now that is an interesting approach. I'm not sure that I want to drink any alcohol and drive down NYC streets, but a fine suggestion. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
For your reference, records indicate that
dgk wrote: Now that is an interesting approach. I'm not sure that I want to drink any alcohol and drive down NYC streets, but a fine suggestion. Keep in mind, the purpose is not to get drunk or impaired in any way. I don’t know if that is easier for me to do because I don’t do much drinking in the first place, or if the reverse is the case since I’m a “lightweight”. All I know is that if I take a half-drink worth of alcohol 15-30 minutes before I go into the cold, and continue to consume 1 drink/hour (roughly matching the rate it metabolizes) when I’m active, it seems to normalize my body heat distribution. If you think trying it out when biking is too risky, give it a shot (ha!) when you have other outdoor activities like shoveling to do. -- "Also . . . I can kill you with my brain." River Tam, Trash, Firefly |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Tue, 06 Jan 2015 20:21:28 +0000, Phil W Lee
wrote: Doc O'Leary considered Mon, 5 Jan 2015 17:38:06 +0000 (UTC) the perfect time to write: For your reference, records indicate that dgk wrote: All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. No, you have to address the fundamental circulation issue. I, too, find it relatively easy (especially with modern clothing) to keep my core warm enough to get sweaty, but the circulation to my extremities is still cut off. The solution is to combat the vasoconstrictor effect directly. My method: alcohol. Im a non-drinker in general, but I *will* drink when I go exercising in cold weather. Not enough to get drunk, of course, but enough to get my circulation into the warm phase. I *want* to lose extra heat at the extremities. Its -7F (-22C) in Minneapolis right now (worse with wind chill), and Im biking today. Its not as fun as it is in warmer weather, but it was far more miserable before I realized how alcohol could improve things. A slightly less controversial alternative to alcohol might be a mild blood thinner, like aspirin 75mg (best taken with a snack, to avoid stomach irritation). Of course, if you prefer natural products, you could achieve the same thing by chewing a bit of willow bark (which is what aspirin was originally derived from), but it's VERY bitter, and controlling the dose would be difficult. I always kind of wondered about that. I knew that asprin came from bark, but how many people went around chewing bark from various trees until they found one that had the desired effect? And since it takes a while to work, they could only chew one tree at a time until sufficient time had passed to know whether it worked or not. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Wed, 07 Jan 2015 10:00:49 -0500, dgk wrote:
On Tue, 06 Jan 2015 20:21:28 +0000, Phil W Lee wrote: Doc O'Leary considered Mon, 5 Jan 2015 17:38:06 +0000 (UTC) the perfect time to write: For your reference, records indicate that dgk wrote: All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. No, you have to address the fundamental circulation issue. I, too, find it relatively easy (especially with modern clothing) to keep my core warm enough to get sweaty, but the circulation to my extremities is still cut off. The solution is to combat the vasoconstrictor effect directly. My method: alcohol. Im a non-drinker in general, but I *will* drink when I go exercising in cold weather. Not enough to get drunk, of course, but enough to get my circulation into the warm phase. I *want* to lose extra heat at the extremities. Its -7F (-22C) in Minneapolis right now (worse with wind chill), and Im biking today. Its not as fun as it is in warmer weather, but it was far more miserable before I realized how alcohol could improve things. A slightly less controversial alternative to alcohol might be a mild blood thinner, like aspirin 75mg (best taken with a snack, to avoid stomach irritation). Of course, if you prefer natural products, you could achieve the same thing by chewing a bit of willow bark (which is what aspirin was originally derived from), but it's VERY bitter, and controlling the dose would be difficult. I always kind of wondered about that. I knew that asprin came from bark, but how many people went around chewing bark from various trees until they found one that had the desired effect? And since it takes a while to work, they could only chew one tree at a time until sufficient time had passed to know whether it worked or not. I've seen "dried willow bark" for sale in a Chinese apothecary shop. I believe it is used as a "tea". -- Cheers, John B. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Thu, 08 Jan 2015 06:58:20 +0000, Phil W Lee
wrote: John B. Slocomb considered Thu, 08 Jan 2015 07:47:25 +0700 the perfect time to write: On Wed, 07 Jan 2015 10:00:49 -0500, dgk wrote: On Tue, 06 Jan 2015 20:21:28 +0000, Phil W Lee wrote: Doc O'Leary considered Mon, 5 Jan 2015 17:38:06 +0000 (UTC) the perfect time to write: For your reference, records indicate that dgk wrote: All interesting points. I complained about having cold toes and fingers on bike forums and get told that I need to keep the core warm. The core is warm and even sweating but the hands and toes freeze. So I just figure that I have crappy circulation there, but maybe keeping the ankles warmer would help. No, you have to address the fundamental circulation issue. I, too, find it relatively easy (especially with modern clothing) to keep my core warm enough to get sweaty, but the circulation to my extremities is still cut off. The solution is to combat the vasoconstrictor effect directly. My method: alcohol. Im a non-drinker in general, but I *will* drink when I go exercising in cold weather. Not enough to get drunk, of course, but enough to get my circulation into the warm phase. I *want* to lose extra heat at the extremities. Its -7F (-22C) in Minneapolis right now (worse with wind chill), and Im biking today. Its not as fun as it is in warmer weather, but it was far more miserable before I realized how alcohol could improve things. A slightly less controversial alternative to alcohol might be a mild blood thinner, like aspirin 75mg (best taken with a snack, to avoid stomach irritation). Of course, if you prefer natural products, you could achieve the same thing by chewing a bit of willow bark (which is what aspirin was originally derived from), but it's VERY bitter, and controlling the dose would be difficult. I always kind of wondered about that. I knew that asprin came from bark, but how many people went around chewing bark from various trees until they found one that had the desired effect? And since it takes a while to work, they could only chew one tree at a time until sufficient time had passed to know whether it worked or not. I've seen "dried willow bark" for sale in a Chinese apothecary shop. I believe it is used as a "tea". And once things like that are in regular use, people tend to notice the effects. I'm sure that in pre-history, some knowledge of that kind was actively sought though. The real shame is how little of it we've retained. I've seen willow bark tea mentioned in different countries so I'd guess that it was pretty well known. But why bother with collecting bark, carefully drying it and making tea when Bayer made all the preparation redundant :-) But many herbal remedies were synthesized and are use today. Foxglove, for example, (digitalis) was used in the 1700's to treat heart problems. Plain old charcoal was used for upset stomachs, probably since pre-historic times, in fact I use it occasionally, but I buy it in the store rather than chopping up my wife's cooking fuel. -- Cheers, John B. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
For your reference, records indicate that
John B. Slocomb wrote: On Thu, 08 Jan 2015 06:58:20 +0000, Phil W Lee wrote: I'm sure that in pre-history, some knowledge of that kind was actively sought though. The real shame is how little of it we've retained. I've seen willow bark tea mentioned in different countries so I'd guess that it was pretty well known. But why bother with collecting bark, carefully drying it and making tea when Bayer made all the preparation redundant Not just redundant, but inherently *scientific*. A lot of the reason why we haven’t retained past “knowledge” is that it got rigorously tested and was found to be bunk. Some less educated people still believe some of the past non-sense, though, and you’ll still see things like rhino horn being used for something a more worldly person would know to buy Viagra for. Regardless, in the cold weather biking/exertion front, I will continue to consume moderate, measured amounts of alcohol when it dips below a tolerable temperature (around 20F/-7C for me). I may add aspirin to the process, but I don’t know how much a blood thinner actually does to improve circulation. I mean, I *feel* the flush that is brought on by alcohol; I have never felt that after taking an aspirin. -- "Also . . . I can kill you with my brain." River Tam, Trash, Firefly |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On the subject of bark teas, anyone heard of quinine as muscle cramp
preventitive? |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On 1/8/2015 5:15 PM, mac wrote:
On the subject of bark teas, anyone heard of quinine as muscle cramp preventitive? Heard of it. Haven't tried it. -- - Frank Krygowski |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Thu, 8 Jan 2015 22:15:29 +0000 (UTC), mac
wrote: On the subject of bark teas, anyone heard of quinine as muscle cramp preventitive? Quinine is a muscle relaxer and yes, can be used to prevent muscle cramps however it may have serious side effects.For night muscle cramps you might try magnesium tablets which work for some people and doesn't seem to have severe side effects. -- Cheers, John B. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Thu, 8 Jan 2015 16:17:18 +0000 (UTC), Doc O'Leary
wrote: For your reference, records indicate that John B. Slocomb wrote: On Thu, 08 Jan 2015 06:58:20 +0000, Phil W Lee wrote: I'm sure that in pre-history, some knowledge of that kind was actively sought though. The real shame is how little of it we've retained. I've seen willow bark tea mentioned in different countries so I'd guess that it was pretty well known. But why bother with collecting bark, carefully drying it and making tea when Bayer made all the preparation redundant Not just redundant, but inherently *scientific*. A lot of the reason why we havent retained past knowledge is that it got rigorously tested and was found to be bunk. Some less educated people still believe some of the past non-sense, though, and youll still see things like rhino horn being used for something a more worldly person would know to buy Viagra for. You are saying that the Chinese have been taking powdered rhino horn for at least two thousand years and no one has discovered that it doesn't work? -- Cheers, John B. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
For your reference, records indicate that
John B. Slocomb wrote: You are saying that the Chinese have been taking powdered rhino horn for at least two thousand years and no one has discovered that it doesn't work? Actually, it turns out that my suggested use is a misconception: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoce..._trade_and_use Regardless, *many* people have discovered that it doesn’t work as a medicine. Just not the ones who take it, I assume, who may themselves be ignorant of the placebo effect. If only they were homeopaths, too, the rhinos would be doing a lot better in the wild. -- "Also . . . I can kill you with my brain." River Tam, Trash, Firefly |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
On Fri, 9 Jan 2015 03:38:44 +0000 (UTC), Doc O'Leary
wrote: For your reference, records indicate that John B. Slocomb wrote: You are saying that the Chinese have been taking powdered rhino horn for at least two thousand years and no one has discovered that it doesn't work? Actually, it turns out that my suggested use is a misconception: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoce..._trade_and_use Regardless, *many* people have discovered that it doesnt work as a medicine. Just not the ones who take it, I assume, who may themselves be ignorant of the placebo effect. If only they were homeopaths, too, the rhinos would be doing a lot better in the wild. Regardless of how it is used, for some 2,000 years people have been buying the stuff. Do you really believe that all those peoples - millions I would guess over 2,000 years - bought it and it did nothing? -- Cheers, John B. |
Raise your glass ( AG: Watch your ankles)
For your reference, records indicate that
John B. Slocomb wrote: On Fri, 9 Jan 2015 03:38:44 +0000 (UTC), Doc O'Leary wrote: Regardless, *many* people have discovered that it doesnt work as a medicine. Just not the ones who take it, I assume, who may themselves be ignorant of the placebo effect. If only they were homeopaths, too, the rhinos would be doing a lot better in the wild. Regardless of how it is used, for some 2,000 years people have been buying the stuff. Do you really believe that all those peoples - millions I would guess over 2,000 years - bought it and it did nothing? Yes. Knowing what we know now, it is quite clear how pre-scientific humans could (and still can) be fooled into putting their faith in things that don’t actually do anything, or sometimes are outright dangerous. To believe otherwise is to set yourself up to be scammed by the next bit of quackery that comes along. -- "Also . . . I can kill you with my brain." River Tam, Trash, Firefly |
AG: The bread-bag trick
A thin plastic sheet over one's shoe makes one's foot strikingly warmer. Just slide the foot into a bread bag, then pull a wool gaiter on to hold the bag in place. Of course, one does need a fresh bag for the trip back -- or maybe in the middle, if you put your foot down a lot. Nobody eats that much bread, but I've found that the orange bags that my newspaper comes in work perfectly, and a summer's worth lasts all winter. In a pinch, one can buy a box of gallon-size twist-tie bags. For wide bags, one needs the sort of gaiter that comes down over the foot. When we wore slot cleats, the cleat would snip a hole in the bag in exactly the right place. I doubt that this would work with the more-complicated cleats now in fashion, but I've no idea what to do instead -- my pedals never wore out {replaceable bearings, you know}, so I still wear slot cleats. (In the summer. Winters, I wear walking shoes.) I've used bags to keep my socks dry when wearing sandals in snowy weather. In this case, pull the bag over your heavy socks, then pull knee-hose over the bags to keep them in place. The thinner and less absorbent the hose, the better, so buy the very cheapest. They do come in black. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On 1/11/2015 9:26 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
A thin plastic sheet over one's shoe makes one's foot strikingly warmer. Just slide the foot into a bread bag, then pull a wool gaiter on to hold the bag in place. Of course, one does need a fresh bag for the trip back -- or maybe in the middle, if you put your foot down a lot. Nobody eats that much bread, but I've found that the orange bags that my newspaper comes in work perfectly, and a summer's worth lasts all winter. In a pinch, one can buy a box of gallon-size twist-tie bags. For wide bags, one needs the sort of gaiter that comes down over the foot. When we wore slot cleats, the cleat would snip a hole in the bag in exactly the right place. I doubt that this would work with the more-complicated cleats now in fashion, but I've no idea what to do instead -- my pedals never wore out {replaceable bearings, you know}, so I still wear slot cleats. (In the summer. Winters, I wear walking shoes.) I've used bags to keep my socks dry when wearing sandals in snowy weather. In this case, pull the bag over your heavy socks, then pull knee-hose over the bags to keep them in place. The thinner and less absorbent the hose, the better, so buy the very cheapest. They do come in black. I agree, with one detail: I always have one pair of socks underneath the plastic bags. Works for me! -- - Frank Krygowski |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Sun, 11 Jan 2015 22:26:25 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: A thin plastic sheet over one's shoe makes one's foot strikingly warmer. Just slide the foot into a bread bag, then pull a wool gaiter on to hold the bag in place. Of course, one does need a fresh bag for the trip back -- or maybe in the middle, if you put your foot down a lot. Nobody eats that much bread, but I've found that the orange bags that my newspaper comes in work perfectly, and a summer's worth lasts all winter. In a pinch, one can buy a box of gallon-size twist-tie bags. For wide bags, one needs the sort of gaiter that comes down over the foot. Why not put the bag on over the sock and then foot, sock and bag, into the shoe? I've done something similar in heavy rain and it worked for an hour or so till I got home. When we wore slot cleats, the cleat would snip a hole in the bag in exactly the right place. I doubt that this would work with the more-complicated cleats now in fashion, but I've no idea what to do instead -- my pedals never wore out {replaceable bearings, you know}, so I still wear slot cleats. (In the summer. Winters, I wear walking shoes.) I've used bags to keep my socks dry when wearing sandals in snowy weather. In this case, pull the bag over your heavy socks, then pull knee-hose over the bags to keep them in place. The thinner and less absorbent the hose, the better, so buy the very cheapest. They do come in black. Ah, I didn't read this before I posted the above :-) But why sandals in the snow? -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb
wrote: But why sandals in the snow? My feet are wider at the toe than at the heel, so wearing shoes isn't always an option, and I wouldn't dream of attempting to drive a car wearing boots. -- Joy Beeson joy beeson at comcast dot net |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Tue, 13 Jan 2015 00:51:54 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb wrote: But why sandals in the snow? My feet are wider at the toe than at the heel, so wearing shoes isn't always an option, and I wouldn't dream of attempting to drive a car wearing boots. I don't think that wider at the toe than the heel is abnormal, is it? As for driving shoes, you sound like my wife :-) She has a special pair of sandals just to drive the car. Says her regular shoes "don't feel comfortable". ( But, of course she's never seen snow either :-) -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On 12/01/2015 11:51 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb wrote: But why sandals in the snow? My feet are wider at the toe than at the heel, so wearing shoes isn't always an option, and I wouldn't dream of attempting to drive a car wearing boots. In Qubec most people have to deal with driving a car wearing boots - at least for 7 or 8 months per year. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Tue, 13 Jan 2015 08:17:33 -0500, Duane
wrote: On 12/01/2015 11:51 PM, Joy Beeson wrote: On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb wrote: But why sandals in the snow? My feet are wider at the toe than at the heel, so wearing shoes isn't always an option, and I wouldn't dream of attempting to drive a car wearing boots. In Qubec most people have to deal with driving a car wearing boots - at least for 7 or 8 months per year. Perhaps because I wore "brogans" for the better part of the 20 years I spent in the air force I can drive with "boots" on. www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brogan I include the reference as I discovered that "brogan" is not the name of a specific item of foot wear, as I had thought, but means a number of different things. It is even a bloke's name :-) I even found a site attributed to "Successful Writer", and entitled "Exploring the use and misuse of words" that discussed the term and displayed a picture of what he referred to as a "brogan", referring to it as an "Air Force Brogan". It makes me wonder as when I served the word "brogan" was listed in the supply catalog as a very specific shoe style which described an ankle high work shoe. The picture was a calf high thing that the Air force termed as a "Boot" in my day :-) I guess it is true, as I have read, that English is a language that is still evolving. Perhaps it is a reason for the very evolved (convoluted?) discussions that we sometime have in these "bicycle" sites :-) -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb
wrote: Why not put the bag on over the sock and then foot, sock and bag, into the shoe? Same reason I don't put my windbreaker on under my jersey. The bread-bag trick is for times when you have to wear summer shoes in the winter; if you buy a special shoe large enough to wear over thick socks, it might as well be one without ventilation holes. -- Joy Beeson joy beeson at comcast dot net |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Tue, 13 Jan 2015 23:23:57 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb wrote: Why not put the bag on over the sock and then foot, sock and bag, into the shoe? Same reason I don't put my windbreaker on under my jersey. The bread-bag trick is for times when you have to wear summer shoes in the winter; if you buy a special shoe large enough to wear over thick socks, it might as well be one without ventilation holes. Joy, if you buy some big burly boots to stomp around in the snow you probably don't want any ventilation holes :-) -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On 14/01/2015 6:26 AM, John B. Slocomb wrote:
On Tue, 13 Jan 2015 23:23:57 -0400, Joy Beeson wrote: On Mon, 12 Jan 2015 18:58:54 +0700, John B. Slocomb wrote: Why not put the bag on over the sock and then foot, sock and bag, into the shoe? Same reason I don't put my windbreaker on under my jersey. The bread-bag trick is for times when you have to wear summer shoes in the winter; if you buy a special shoe large enough to wear over thick socks, it might as well be one without ventilation holes. Joy, if you buy some big burly boots to stomp around in the snow you probably don't want any ventilation holes :-) Ah, perhaps I missed the first part of this thread. If we're talking about cycling shoes with vents causing problems in the winter, what I usually do is wear the bootie things which cover the vents on top of the shoe. Then you can use a different sole insert to block the holes under the shoe, like a Dr. Scholl's liner etc. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On Wed, 14 Jan 2015 09:27:40 -0500, Duane
wrote: Ah, perhaps I missed the first part of this thread. If we're talking about cycling shoes with vents causing problems in the winter, what I usually do is wear the bootie things which cover the vents on top of the shoe. Then you can use a different sole insert to block the holes under the shoe, like a Dr. Scholl's liner etc. I didn't like the first pair of booties I bought, so there was never another. (I don't recall seeing any for sale, come to think of it.) Now that we have on-line shopping, I probably could find decent booties -- but now that I no longer live on a state road, there are hardly any cold days when it's safe for old ladies to go out -- the plastic bags are less trouble than hunting down and keeping track of booties. (And there's something to be said for disposing of one's shoe covers after every ride.) I wonder whether they still make the toe covers that attach to toe straps? Those worked quite well. If you could find a pair that fit. Footnote: it wasn't just any state road. I lived across from the county garage where the snowplows and the emergency dispatcher hung out, between the state snowplow garage and the town snowplow garage, a few doors from a sheriff's substation, and among two schools, two firehouses, and an ambulance bay. If my road wasn't clean, nobody was going anywhere. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://roughsewing.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: Winter Hydration
You don't need as much water in the winter as in the summer, but it's at least as important to get enough. Dehydration lowers your heat production, and low blood volume reduces your ability to distribute heat. It's much harder to remember to keep sipping a half-frozen beverage than it is to remember to sip often when you are sweating like a faucet, so dehydration may actually be more likely in cold weather. Filling the bottle with a boiling beverage sounds like a good idea -- but before the beverage is cool enough to be safe to sip, the valve freezes and you can't get at it. Carry only one bottle in winter; a second bottle will freeze before you finish the first one. If there are no refilling stops, carry the extra in your pannier, well wrapped. Starting with hot water can help. I've found Rubbermaid's square quart bottles good for carrying water and ice in the summer; I can no longer ride far enough to need back-up water in the winter, so I haven't tested them for carrying warm drinks. A large container from which you re-fill your bottle will freeze less than spare bottles, and you don't have to worry about frozen valves. Be sure the bottle is tipped up when you drink, so that ice floats away from the valve. Don't squeeze the bottle or suck on it; any ice near the valve will be carried into it. Blow air into the bottle and let the water flow out This moves ice away from the valve and may melt a molecule of ice. Drink frequently to keep the valve open. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: The bread-bag trick
On 16/01/2015 11:13 PM, Joy Beeson wrote:
On Wed, 14 Jan 2015 09:27:40 -0500, Duane wrote: Ah, perhaps I missed the first part of this thread. If we're talking about cycling shoes with vents causing problems in the winter, what I usually do is wear the bootie things which cover the vents on top of the shoe. Then you can use a different sole insert to block the holes under the shoe, like a Dr. Scholl's liner etc. I didn't like the first pair of booties I bought, so there was never another. (I don't recall seeing any for sale, come to think of it.) Now that we have on-line shopping, I probably could find decent booties -- but now that I no longer live on a state road, there are hardly any cold days when it's safe for old ladies to go out -- the plastic bags are less trouble than hunting down and keeping track of booties. (And there's something to be said for disposing of one's shoe covers after every ride.) I wonder whether they still make the toe covers that attach to toe straps? Those worked quite well. If you could find a pair that fit. Footnote: it wasn't just any state road. I lived across from the county garage where the snowplows and the emergency dispatcher hung out, between the state snowplow garage and the town snowplow garage, a few doors from a sheriff's substation, and among two schools, two firehouses, and an ambulance bay. If my road wasn't clean, nobody was going anywhere. I don't know if they still make the covers that attach to toe straps but they do make the toe covers that slide over the front of your shoes. I use these when it's not too cold as the booties tend to be too warm, even on cold days. |
AG: Winter Hills
Don't charge hills in winter. If you try to climb without slowing down, you'll get all sweaty and then freeze when you are coasting down the other side. When climbing a hill, you are out of the wind and generating heat -- make it last! Shift down, and pedal just hard enough to keep warm. -- joy beeson at comcast dot net http://joybeeson.home.comcast.net/ The above message is a Usenet post. I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site. |
AG: Winter Hills
On Sun, 25 Jan 2015 14:36:05 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: Don't charge hills in winter. If you try to climb without slowing down, you'll get all sweaty and then freeze when you are coasting down the other side. When climbing a hill, you are out of the wind and generating heat -- make it last! Shift down, and pedal just hard enough to keep warm. Or move to Florida. No hills, no winter. There is wind though. |
AG: Winter Hills
On Wed, 28 Jan 2015 08:25:48 -0500, dgk wrote:
Or move to Florida. No hills, no winter. There is wind though. And deep, deep sand. Or there was in the late fifties. -- Joy Beeson joy beeson at comcast dot net |
AG: Winter Hills
On Wed, 28 Jan 2015 20:25:45 -0400, Joy Beeson
wrote: On Wed, 28 Jan 2015 08:25:48 -0500, dgk wrote: Or move to Florida. No hills, no winter. There is wind though. And deep, deep sand. Or there was in the late fifties. I was there in the early 1950's and they had made sort of wide paths with a black looking stuff that were pretty smooth and kept you from sinking in the sand :-) -- Cheers, John B. |
AG: Winter Hills
On 29/01/2015 6:54 AM, John B. Slocomb wrote:
On Wed, 28 Jan 2015 20:25:45 -0400, Joy Beeson wrote: On Wed, 28 Jan 2015 08:25:48 -0500, dgk wrote: Or move to Florida. No hills, no winter. There is wind though. And deep, deep sand. Or there was in the late fifties. I was there in the early 1950's and they had made sort of wide paths with a black looking stuff that were pretty smooth and kept you from sinking in the sand :-) Until the wind blows the sand from the beach over those paths. |
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